State of the Air: Arizona

Columba lives with her husband and two daughters in Phoenix. She holds a degree in Liberal Arts and has worked for over 10 years on uniting her community and teaching faith, with a focus on early education and youth group programs. Columba deeply believes that small communities can make huge impacts in the world, therefore she wants to educate members of her community to ensure that they have the tools that are necessary to advocate for themselves.

Here’s what we’re working on in Arizona:

Moms Clean Air Force Arizona brings attention to issues and policies that impact clean air, climate change and children’s health. We fight for a world free of harmful chemicals in our air, water and food, so children can grow up healthy with every opportunity to thrive. We educate and activate moms and their families to work with local, state and federal leaders to advance clean air policies and climate solutions. We are building a community of moms who care by meeting with elected officials, organizing and attending local events, speaking at community meetings and press conferences, and serving as a media resource on behalf of our children’s and community’s health. By collectively speaking out against air pollution and climate change, we are creating a powerful force in Arizona that is rooted in the love we have for our children. Please join us in this fight for cleaner air and climate solutions in Arizona.

Moms Clean Air Force Programs in Arizona

Our Moms & Mayors program connects moms with their mayors and local leaders to improve children’s health and build resilient communities. We educate, empower and mobilize Moms in their hometowns to work with their local elected leaders to implement clean air strategies, reduce toxins in the community and take action on climate change. We also train Moms to join boards and commissions and urge them to run for office.

Our Baby Power program educates and engages expectant and new moms on our issues with the message: every baby has the power to make you want to change the world.

Ecomadres is a collaborative program between GreenLatinos and Moms Clean Air Force that brings Latina moms together to address issues of clean air, climate change, and toxins that affect the health of Latino children and families. The program arms Madres with reliable information and solutions through online resources, articles, action tools and on-the-ground events, and provides an inclusive community that empowers and lifts up the voices of Madres for the benefit of our communities. Ecomadres has a vibrant network of state-base field teams and allies across the country.

In addition to state-specific work, Moms Clean Air Force Arizona is supporting national campaigns:

Stopping the Rollbacks of Environmental Protections: We are working hard to oppose the assaults on our bedrock environmental laws by the Trump Administration and the EPA Administrator including:

Climate Change: We are fighting the Trump Administration’s attempt to repeal America’s Clean Power Plan that sought to reduce carbon emissions, decrease dangerous co-pollutants, and achieve the goals of the Paris Climate Accord.

Smog: We are opposing the Trump Administration’s EPA proposal to weaken national smog standards.

Clean Cars: We are opposing the Trump Administration’s attempt to roll back sensible fuel-efficiency standards for cars and light trucks. The current clean car standards would prevent 6 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas pollution by 2025 and save American families $1.7 trillion in fuel costs.

Mercury: We are opposing the attempt by the Trump Administration to loosen regulations that reduce the harmful mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants.

Chemical Policy Reform: We are fighting to implement the Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act (2016) that keeps toxic chemicals out of the products we use every day.

Natural Gas Pollution: We are opposing the Trump Administration’s attempt to roll back Federal methane rules for new sources, weakening the limits on the amount of methane pollution that the oil and gas industry is allowed to vent, leak and burn. We are demanding strong protections from methane, volatile organic compounds, and other harmful air pollutants associated with fracking and natural gas development.

EPA Budget: We are fighting to ensure the EPA budget is fully funded, opposing the Trump Administration’s proposal to gut its budget by more than 25%.

Fighting to Make Climate Progress:

Clean Energy: We are working to build support at the local, state and federal level to ensure that our energy future is renewable, clean, and healthy — for the sake of our children’s health.

Tell Your Governor: Take the Lead on Climate Action: With America’s departure from the historic Paris Climate Agreement, the responsibility for climate action now falls on others: States, municipalities, businesses, universities and communities. With the federal government surrendering its chance to lead on climate action, our states must be as aggressive as possible in the effort to thwart global warming and protect the health of our children. Let your governor know that you demand climate action and you need them to take the lead.

Arizona’s electricity generation by source, 2017:

Coal (46%)

Natural Gas (42%)

Renewables (8%)

Nuclear (4%)

Petroleum (1%)

According to the American Lung Association’s 2018 State of the Air report, Maricopa County, Arizona recorded 92 code orange ozone days in 2017

The ALA gave 4 out of 15 counties in Arizona a F grade level for ozone air quality

The US Energy Information Administration estimates that in 2015, the state of Arizona consumed 385.8 trillion thermal units of coal

Arizona ranks 23th in the nation for total carbon dioxide emissions at 9.3 million metric tons per year

According to the American Lung Association’s 2018 State of the Air report, over 17,000 children suffer from asthma in Pima County

Moms Clean Air Force Arizona hosted a Mama Summit in Phoenix. Moms, families and local elected officials united on May 12th for our first ever city-wide Mama Summit. Together, we worked with our local officials and Mayor Greg Stanton to build a healthier, safer, and cleaner Phoenix for the sake of our kids.